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ARABLE

Tips on achieving healthy hedgerows on farm

Hedges are a defining feature of our countryside and one of the best habitats for wildlife on any farm.  Far more than being a boundary, they also support farm business…

LIVESTOCK

How feeding methane inhibitors can help cut emissions

Methane inhibitors supplied in feed rations could play a significant role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in ruminants. However, no one size fits all, advises Annie Williams, ruminant nutritionist and…

BUSINESS

Alternative land uses: Woodland creation - key points

Financial support for woodland creation and management in England is at record levels, so it could be the right time to consider this as an option. Talk of reducing sheep…

CARBON

Carbon markets: A beginner's guide

The UK’s carbon markets are growing, but there is confusion around the principles. Farmers Weekly asks CLA adviser Matthew Doran how they work. See also: Mineral rights - what farmers…

BUSINESS

Rural housing: Options to decarbonise and improve efficiency

From period farmhouses to farmworkers’ cottages, rural housing comes in many shapes and sizes, but they all share similar challenges when it comes to energy. Rural properties off the mains…

ARABLE

How 'mega-cluster' project benefits farming and nature

A project linking farmers and private investors across a 12,500ha area of Sussex is aiming to support nature recovery and food production on a landscape scale.  The Weald to Waves…

Case studies

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LIVESTOCK

How a Portuguese green oasis inspired a move to agroforestry

Mike Adams had never seen the point in growing trees in fields. But visits to farms in southern Europe and Turkey proved transformational; he is now sold on their benefits…

GRASSLAND MANAGEMENT

Benefits of sward lifting for profit and environment

A decade of sward lifting on a Cornish farm has prevented run-off after heavy rainfall, shortened the winter housing period and is helping soils to sequester carbon. A typical field…

CARBON

Pioneering arable farm sells carbon credits to top F1 team

A pioneering arable farm in Leicestershire has become the first farm in the UK to sell measured carbon credits to a range of buyers on the open market, including the…

CROP MANAGEMENT

How farmer uses biodynamic approach to establish crops

For the past two decades, Wiltshire mixed farmer Richard Gantlett has been using the power of biodynamic farming to grow crops completely free of chemicals and without the plough. With…

BIODIVERSITY

Wild grey partridge project promotes biodiversity and profit

A decade-long wild grey partridge project establishing cover crop field margins at a Scottish farming estate has proved an effective way to promote biodiversity and reap an economic return. Balgonie…

COVER CROPS

Cover crop trial reveals impact of grazing on nitrates

Since winning the title of Farmers Weekly Environmental Farmers of the Year, Emma and James Loder-Symonds have been busy trialling the impact of grazing cover crops. The cover crop trial…

Insights

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FARM POLICY

NI farm policy shift creates challenges for livestock sector

Support for farm businesses in Northern Ireland is going through a transition period, away from the old Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) system of support and towards a Farm Sustainability Payment…

ARABLE

How cultivated margins help rare plants and biodiversity

Cultivated margins, or areas of fields that are cultivated annually, but not drilled, are one of the best ways of encouraging rare arable plants and the wildlife that depends on…

FARM POLICY

NVZ review: Welsh farmer frustration continues with rules

Since 2021, farmers in Wales have had to contend with the Water Resources (Control of Agricultural Pollution) (Wales) Regulations. These designated the whole of the country as a nitrate vulnerable…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Why scrapping net zero could help tackle climate change

Farmers want to play their part in reducing greenhouse gas emissions – but net zero is disengaging them, says a report. The finding is just one conclusion reached by a…

ENVIRONMENT

Clean energy 2030 – a government at loggerheads with farmers?

The UK government has ambitious plans to increase national energy production to reduce reliance on imports and move towards 100% clean energy by 2030. But for this to become reality,…

REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE

Why trees in hedges improve arable farm landscapes

Trees in hedges help with habitat provision and carbon storage, bringing diversity and resilience to the farmed landscape, while providing continuity when hedges are being managed. For farmers and growers…

ENVIRONMENT

Analysis: What future for sheep farming in the uplands?

Sheep farmers can be forgiven for feeling they are being demonised. Week in, week out, there seems to be some new report or TV programme suggesting that sheep are a…

LIVESTOCK

What makes a sustainable dairy farm – survey results

An exclusive Farmers Weekly survey has revealed that uncertainty about future investment in infrastructure, or to meet potential new legislation, presents the biggest challenge for the UK’s dairy farmers. However,…

Latest environment news

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ENVIRONMENT

Soil Association dismay at static organic area

Scotland is leading the way in organic land growth for a sixth year, while other nations in the UK continue to fall behind considerably, much to the dismay of the…

ENVIRONMENT

Report says ruminants part of the solution to climate change

A new report has argued that ruminants fed on grass are better for the environment and can help combat climate change, compared to intensely farmed and grain-fed animals. The Sustainable…

WILDLIFE

Mixed emotions as wild beaver spotted on Welsh river

The sighting of a wild beaver on the River Dyfi near Machynlleth has been described as concerning by a Welsh farming union, while supporters of the once-extinct mammal have celebrated…

ENVIRONMENT

Gruesome lamb attacks devastate farmer mental health

Warning: Article contains graphic material A distraught hill farmer has revealed how sea eagle attacks on his lambs are severely affecting his mental health and forcing him to consider quitting…

ENVIRONMENT

Lack of grassroots farming voices on NRW Board under fire

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has been criticised by a Welsh farming union for the lack of grassroots farming representation on its 12-member board. NRW has recently appointed three new board…

ENVIRONMENT

Wildfire warning as Labour plans to ban controlled burning

UK government plans to further restrict controlled burning on peatland has been met with criticism by campaigners, who say the move will risk increasing out-of-control wildfires across the country. The…

ENVIRONMENT

Welsh farmer frustration over water pollution review

A review into water pollution regulations in Wales has suggested there could be an end to “farming-by-calendar rules”, but questions remain over funding for infrastructure. The statutory four-year review, led…

ENVIRONMENT

Dismay at RSPB decision to remove sheep from upland farms

Residents and farming supporters in the Swindale valley on the eastern edge of the Lake District have voiced their dismay at the decision to remove sheep from two RSPB tenanted…

ENVIRONMENT

New national forest aims to transform west of England landscape

Farm leaders have given a cautious welcome to plans announced by Defra on Friday (21 March) to create the first national forest in 30 years, but insist farmers be rewarded…

NEWS

Ministers invited to choose which wildlife plots must go

A Bedfordshire arable farmer has written to prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, Defra ministers and chancellor Rachel Reeves to ask if they might help decide which wildlife plots to rip…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Emergency SFI meeting scheduled with Defra farming minister

An emergency roundtable meeting with farming organisations has been scheduled for Monday 17 March to discuss Defra’s decision to pull the plug on new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) applications. Farming…

AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION

Devolved nations respond to England's SFI debacle

Farmers in the devolved regions are urging their governments to learn the lessons of the current Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) debacle in England, to produce schemes that are workable, well-funded,…

Video

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AIR AND WATER

Video: FW Investigates - would dredging reduce flooding?

The past few months of relentless wet weather have again highlighted the pressing issue of how best to manage rivers and watercourses near farmland. Heavy rainfall events are becoming more…

NEWS

Video: Farmer defends his actions on River Lugg

A Herefordshire farmer who was jailed for causing damage to a protected river has defended his actions, insisting they helped prevent flooding to local properties and land. Several homes along…

SHEEP

Video: How a lowland farm is preparing for low-methane sheep

Results from the first UK farm to test methane emissions in sheep using portable accumulation chambers have shown they were producing on average about 20g/day of methane and 1.2kg/day of…